Delamination

The installation reflects on the history of the Trebnitz Palace, located on the Polish border in the former East German territory. This palace, once owned by an aristocratic family, was nationalised after World War II and served for a time as a refuge for Germans displaced from eastern territories. Today, it functions as an education centre for Polish and German youth.

Adapting a building for current needs involves making decisions about the value of individual elements — determining what should be preserved or restored and what can be considered redundant and removed.

In the context of the site-specific project "Hab+Gut," which can be translated as "belongings or property," I created an installation in one of the rooms of an abandoned house adjacent to the palace, now part of its estate. The civilisation of the Anthropocene era exploits natural resources ruthlessly, yet nature quickly reclaims spaces abandoned by humans.

In what was once the owners' bedroom, I observed peeling wallpaper, revealing layers of previous paint—the hidden layers of its walls. The torn wallpaper, like an open curtain, "unveiled" the gilt inscription "Possession." This ambiguous term suggests various meanings, including ownership, control over someone or something, or even implications of demonic possession or a haunted house.

Leaves and branches began to infiltrate the interior through leaky windows, reclaiming land previously appropriated by humans, which inspired me to enhance this effect. The encroaching vegetation was accompanied by the posthumanist in its meaning inscription "We are all compost," a quote from Donna Haraway, which I uncovered in the dust that had settled on the windows for many years.